David Stuckler of the University of Cambridge, Sanjay Basu of the University of California, San Francisco, and Martin McKee of the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, write in a BMJ commentary that misconceptions and fallacies “have led to serious under-budgeting for non-communicable diseases” (NCDs). The authors question whether food companies, or lobbying groups and non-governmental organizations that are influenced by food corporations, should “be viewed as trusted partners and have a seat at the table during public health negotiations” leading up to the U.N. High-level Meeting on NCDs.

The meeting “is a battleground, pitting public interests against powerful private ones,” but with “the voices of people affected by non-communicable diseases … mostly quiet. Whether the meeting encourages the emergence of a global social movement for change will shape the future of our health for years to come,” they conclude (8/23).